In the days since the presidential election, states across the country have seen increased incidents of racist or anti-Semitic vandalism and violence, many of which have drawn directly on the rhetoric and proposals of President-elect Donald Trump.
The Southern Poverty Law Center has counted more than 200 complaints of hate crimes since Election Day, according to USA Today.
“Since the election, we’ve seen a big uptick in incidents of vandalism, threats, intimidation spurred by the rhetoric surrounding Mr. Trump’s election,” Richard Cohen, president of the Southern Poverty Law Center told USA Today. “The white supremacists out there are celebrating his victory and many are feeling their oats.”
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Here are a few examples:
Maryland
When the rector at the Episcopal Church of Our Saviour in Silver Spring, Maryland opened the church on Sunday morning, he found that a sign advertising Spanish services had been ripped and vandalized with the words, “TRUMP NATION WHITES ONLY.” The same message was written on a brick wall near the church’s memorial garden.
Graffiti at Our Savior Baptist Church in Silver Spring. #NBC4DCpic.twitter.com/d8G7F10nz6
— Jay Alvey (@alvey_jay) November 13, 2016
Our Savior, Hillandale and St. David's, Bean Blossom were both vandalized in the name of Trump. They are Episcopal parishes in MD and IN.
— Broderick (@BroderickGreer) November 13, 2016
“He was shocked and appalled, and everyone has been shocked and appalled,” Parish administrator Tracey Henley told TIME. “Montgomery County—it’s not the kind of place where racial incidents happen, but since last Tuesday they’ve been increasing in number.”
Henley said other churches in the area, especially those with large Latino congregations, have been targeted in similar ways, and she worries the community will see more incidents of racism in the future.
“A year ago, it wasn’t possible to be a racist bigot and get elected president,” she said. “People now feel free to say racist things that they wouldn’t have said before.”
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New York
Swastikas were drawn on several doors in a residence hall at the New School in New York City on Saturday. Three Jewish women live in the suite where one of the swastikas was drawn, according to a tweet from one of the students who lives there.
We woke up to this on our door, in a dorm at @TheNewSchool, where 3 Jewish women live. @ShaunKing@deray@parsonsdesignpic.twitter.com/tK1IpXA1ae
— sam 🌸 (they/she) (@samlichtenstein) November 12, 2016
“That someone would attempt to create fear amongst us is inexcusable. This is not what we as a community stand for, nor is it something we will tolerate,” New School President David E. Van Zandt said in a statement, calling the vandalism an “illegal, inflammatory and hurtful influence on our campus.” He said the New York City Police Department is investigating the incident, and campus security has been increased.
“Hate speech is reprehensible, and has no place in NYC. To the affected, we stand with you. To the perpetrators, we are better than this,” New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said.
A residence hall at SUNY Geneseo was also vandalized with a swastika and the word “Trump” on Friday, the Genesee Sun reported.
California
Anti-Semitic graffiti—including a swastika and the words “Heil Trump”—appeared at a bus stop at the University of California at San Diego on Thursday. In a statement, Hillel of San Diego said it worked with the office of Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs, Campus Police, and the Anti-Defamation League to ensure the graffiti was removed.
Indiana
Journalist Rob Burgess shared photographs of the Saint David’s Episcopal Church in Bean Blossom, Indiana of a Sunday incident in which the church walls were vandalized with swastikas, as well as the words “Heil Trump,” and a homophobic slur that, presumably, refers to the Episcopal Church’s stance on gay marriage.
https://twitter.com/robaburg/status/797883712478347264
Pennsylvania
Black students at the University of Pennsylvania were added to a racist GroupMe message on Friday that included violent threats toward them. The messages were sent by someone using the name “Daddy Trump,” and the group was named “MudMen,” Philly.com reported.
Screenshots of the account shared on social media showed messages with racial slurs, a calendar invite for a “daily lynching” and old images of African-American lynchings.
It also included references to Trump’s comments about grabbing women by the genitals without consent.
Michigan
A man threatened a Muslim student at the University of Michigan on Friday, demanding that she remove her hijab or be set on fire with a lighter, the Detroit Free Press reported.
Police in Ann Arbor, Mich., are investigating the incident, and the Michigan chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations condemned it.
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“Our nation’s leaders, and particularly President-elect Donald Trump, need to speak out forcefully against the wave of anti-Muslim incidents sweeping the country after Tuesday’s election,” Dawud Walid, the chapter’s executive director, said in a statement.
In a separate incident on Thursday, students at Royal Oak Middle School in Royal Oak, Mich., chanted “build that wall!” during their lunch period, echoing Trump’s promise to build a wall on the Mexican border to prevent illegal immigration.
“In responding to this incident—indeed in responding to this election—we need to hear each other’s stories, not slogans, we need to work towards understanding, not scoring points, and we need to find a way to move forward that respects and values each and every member of our community,” Superintendent Shawn Lewis-Lakin said in a statement.
This article originally appeared on TIME.com
